Vending container



Jan. 6, 1948. LE ROY s. SAYRE 2,433,925

VENDING CONTAINER Filed lay 28, 1945 Br firm/ven- Patented Jan. 6, 1948umr n s'rAras' PATENT ornca Le Roy S. Sayre, Stuttgart, Ark. ApplicationMay as, 1945", Serial No. 590,329

This present invention relates to a container andmore particularly to adispensing or vending cup for ice cream or other ices or confections oflike nature.

The primary purpose of the invention is the preservation of the contentsof the cup in a sanitary condition.

Another object is the design of an inexpensive cup whichis sturdy andprovided with a bottom securely held to the rest of the cup and is atthe same time so constructed that the contents of the container may beremoved from the same after removal of the lid by inversion of the cupand slight tapping on the bottom. v

A further object is the'design of a cup-which may be closed afterfilling by a lid firmly interlocked with the rest of the cup andremovable therefrom without great effort.

A still further object is the design of a cup equipped with a dispensingutensil and holding the latter prior to the opening of the container ina position and condition which makes the contamination of the utensilimpossible. The very appearance of the cup and the utensil storedtherein is an assuranc to the prospective purchaser that the contentsand utensil going with the cup are in the best sanitary condition forconsumption.

Still another object of the invention is the design of an economical andcompletely sanitary package fulfilling the above standards andrequirements and adapted for almost any kind of food, such as cheesespreads, butter, jellies and jams, relishes, fruit sauces and meatspreads.

With these and other objects in view the invention consists in thenovelty of construction, combination and arrangement of parts describedin detail in the following description and.claimed in the appendedclaims.

The description should be read in connection with the accompanyingdrawing in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of myinvention;

Figures 2 and 3 are central, diametral and vertical sections on line 2-2and 3-3 of Figure 1 respectively the latter view being broken away;

Figure 4 is a horizontal section on line |l of, Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a horizontal section analogous to Figure 4 of amodification;

Figure 6 is a vertical detail section analogous to Figure 3 throughanother modification;-

Figure '7 is a modified form of the dispensing utensil; I

Figure 8 is a further modification of the utensil;

6 Claims. (CL 229-) Figure 9 is a modification of the handle portion ofthe utensil.

In the drawings in which like reference characters designate like orsimilar parts, Figures 1-4 illustrate the preferred form of my inventionwhich includes a bottom 2 having an upwardly diverging or conical flange3. This bottom is inserted in the lower end portion of a conicalcontainer wall 4 which diverges upwardly to the same extent as thebottom flange and has its bottom and turned inwardly to form a flange 5.The free upper edge of the latter supports the bottom 2 (Figure 2). Thisconstruction has the advantage that the bottom is securely held in thelower downwardly converging end of the container wall. Another advantagelies in the fact that the container may be emptied of its contents bymere inversion and a slight tap on the bottom.

The container wall which has a conventional seam (not shown) is providednear its upper edge with a bead 6 defining an external peripheral restsa top disk 9 having at its circumference a radially disposed tab l!)which is folded at the middle upon itself and extends at right angles tothe upper surface of the lid and substantially parallel to the adjacentwall portion rising above the bead 6. As seen in Figure 2, the tab 10 isformed of two plies, one of which forms an integral extension of eachdisk 8 and 9. The diametral portion of the top disk in alignment withthe tab is deformed with respect to the remainder of the top disk with aview of providing a pocket for a dispensing utensil still to bedescribed. The deformation takes the form of an outward bulge ll of anoutline conforming substantially to the outline of the utensil (Figure4). The undeformed, flat portion of the top disk is flrmly faces of thecontainer. After filling the latter with ice cream or other food thesection l3 of the handle attached to and between the disks forming thelid is inserted in the slot I4 and the lid is pressed into the openupper end or the filled container until the marginal peripheral edge ofthe lid snaps into the internal groove of the bead 6. To removethe lidthe user grips the tab, lifts the lid and extracts the handle from theslot M. The dispensing utensil may then be extracted from its pocket bytearing the bulging portion of the top disk from the remainder of thelid. Thus the user finds himself in possession of a dispensing utensilwhich he knows to be free from contamination and this knowledge willcertainly enhance the pleasure experienced in eating the ice cream. I donot restrict myself to any particular material for the container orutensil. Paper is the preferred material for the former and wood forthat of the latter.

Figure 5 is a modification of the construction of the pocket for theutensil. The bulge ll formed in the top disk is wider at the handleportion of the utensil and its outline or contour is formed by a seriesof perforations I5 so that the utensil may be removed from the pocket bytearing the bulging portion off the remainder of the top disk along theline of perforations.

In Figure 6 is shown a dispensing utensil 12 of lentil-shapedcross-section enclosed between the two disks.

In Figure 7 the dispensing utensil is formed from a. strip of materialof uniform substantially rectangular cross-section and one end thereofis rounded while the opposite or'handle end I3 is of reduced width.

In Figure 8 the dispensing end l6 of the utensil is shaped like a fork,I

Figure 9 shows a utensil the reduced handle portion l3 of which extendsentirely into or beyond the slot of the container. The transverseshoulders l'l formed by the reduced portion are slightly rounded toconform to the inner curvature of the upper end portion of thecontainer.

Any of the various modifications of the utensil described above andillustrated in the appended drawing may be combined with any form of thepocket or lid disclosed.

While I have described in detail several embodiments or my invention oneof which is directed to a. combination between the cup, lid anddispensing utensil while others are directed to the pocket for thelatter or to the utensil alone, I desire it to be understood that theseembodiments are mere examples, not limitations of my invention, and thatchanges or modifications may suggest themselves to those skilled in theart without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention asexpressed in the appended claims.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: V

1. A container of the class described comprising a hollow body portionclosed at the bottom and interiorly grooved adjacent its open upper end,a removable lid having a peripheral margin inserted in the groove andprovided with a pocket having an end opening outwardly of said margin,and a dispensing utensil in the pocket.

2. A container comprising a hollow body portion closed at the bottom, aremovable lid for closing the open top of the body portion consistingofupper and lower plys cemented together except at the intermediateportion and thus defining a pocket, and a dispensing utensil in thepocket.

3. A container comprising a hollow body portion closed at the bottom, aremovable top lid for closing the open top of the body portionconsisting of a lower and upper layer, the latter being outwardly andupwardly deformed at its in I termediate portion for forming with thelower layer a pocket having an end opening outwardly of the edge or thelid, and a dispensing utensil in the pocket.

4. A container comprising a hollow body portion including a bottom, a,removable lid for closing the open top of the body portion formed by alower and upper layer cemented together except at an intermediateportion, the outline of such portion being perforated, for forming apocket having an end opening outwardly of the edge of the lid, and adispensing utensil in the pocket.

5. A container comprising a hollow body portion including a bottom, alid for closing the open top end of the container and having an upwardlyextending finger tab located at a portion of its periphery and a pocketin substantially diametrical alignment therewith and opening outwardlyof the periphery of the lid at the end thereof remote to said tab, and adispensing utensil in the pocket.

6. A container comprising a hollow body portion closed at the bottom andhaving a slot parallel to and adjacent its upper, open end, a lid forthe upper end having a pocket opening outwardly of its periphery, and adispensing utensil in the pocket and having a handle end projectingthrough the open end of the pocket and through the slot.

LEROY S. SAYRE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 891,878 Thatcher June 30, 19081,734,477 Fowle Nov. 5, 1929 1,657,325 Suttle Jan. 24, 1928 1,607,865Butler Nov. 23, 1926 1,257,057 White Feb. 19, 1918 1,687,678 MalloryOct, 16, 1928

